Philip Paul Hallie (1922–1994) was an author, philosopher and professor at

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...

for 32 years. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he served in the

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. His degrees were from Harvard,

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

(where he was a Fulbright Scholar at Jesus College from 1949 to 1951) and

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...

. He developed the model of institutional cruelty.

Institutional cruelty

''Institutional cruelty'' is a model developed by Philip Hallie, who believes ethics are rooted in passion and common sense rather than in technical science. Hallie defines "institutional cruelty" as a persistent pattern of humiliation that endures for years in a community, but the victimizer and the victim find ways to downplay the harm that is being done. Both the victim and the victimizer justify cruel actions based on what they have been led to believe is "actual" inferiority. Hallie argues that cruelty is created by an imbalance of power, or hierarchy. According to his view, the opposite of institutionalized cruelty is freedom from the cruel relationship, not just kindness. Institutional cruelty demotes individuality. Hallie sites a quote from a Nazi SS Officer stating, "Commitment o an institutionthat overrides all sentimentality transforms cruelty and destruction into moral nobility, and commitment is the lifeblood of an institution," (Hallie "From Cruelty to Goodness" 7).

Published works

Hallie's work generally explores the nature of ethics—good and evil, cruelty and kindness. His writing and statements have made particular reference to the admiration he holds for members of the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

Le Chambon-sur-Lignon Le Chambon-sur-Lignon (, literally "Le Chambon on Lignon"; oc, Lo Chambon, label=Auvergnat) is a commune in the Haute-Loire department in south-central France. Residents have been primarily Huguenot or Protestant since the 17th century. Durin ...

. * ''Scar of Montaigne'' (1966) * ''The Paradox of Cruelty'' (1969) * ''Lest Innocent Blood be Shed'' (1979) * ''Tales of Good and Evil, Help and Harm'' (1997) * ''In the Eye of the Hurricane: Tales of Good and Evil, Help and Harm'' (2001) * ''From Cruelty to Goodness'' In "From Cruelty to Goodness" he defines cruelty by what it depends upon to exist. He explains that all cruelty derives from a deficit in power. Examples are used such as Nazi concentration camps and slavery. "The power of the majority and the weakness of a minority were at the center of institutional cruelty of slavery and Nazi anti-Semitism." He also emphasizes that deep humiliation in institutionalized cruelty can be just as hurtful to the victim as episodic cruelty, cruelty where both the victim and the victimizer are aware of the harm being committed. He then goes on to purport that the redress of stopping cruelty isn't enough to negate or perfectly oppose cruelty. Hospitality is the only cure for cruelty. "It lies in unsentimental, efficacious love."Hallie, Philip. "From Cruelty to Goodness" in Christina Sommers & Fred Sommers, ''Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life'', Harcourt College Publishers (2001) pp. 14-15. This is described as not only "being your brothers keeper" (protecting the weak), but also as staying true to the "negative injunctions against killing and betraying."

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070718085059/http://www.wesleyan.edu/av/Hallie3.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Hallie, Philip 1994 deaths Wesleyan University faculty Educators from Illinois 1922 births Jewish American writers Jewish philosophers Harvard University alumni Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Grinnell College alumni 20th-century American philosophers United States Army personnel of World War II People from Chicago 20th-century American Jews Fulbright alumni

Institutional cruelty

Published works

See also

References

External links